Misao Okawa, World’s Oldest Person Says: ‘Eat And Sleep And You Will Live A Long Time’

Misao Okawa, the world’s oldest living person, celebrated her 116th birthday on Wednesday. The Japanese pensioner was born back in 1898, when Queen Victoria was England’s queen, and the Spanish American war was still raging.

Okawa, who has been a widow ever since her husband passed away in 1931, 83 years ago, has held the world record for being the oldest person alive since June of last year when Jireomon Kimura passed away, aged 116.

So what’s the secret to living till 116? Well, according to Misao Okawa, it’s all about diet, sleep, and learning how to relax properly. She told reporters: “Eat and sleep and you will live a long time. You have to learn to relax.”

Tomohito Okada, the head of the Kurenai retirement home where Okawa lives, said: “Mrs Okawa eats three large meals a day and makes sure that she sleeps eight hours a night,” adding, “She insists that her favourite meal is sushi, particularly mackerel on vinegar-steamed rice, and she has it at least once every month.”

As well as the healthy diet and good quality sleep, Okawa has also made every attempt to stay in shape by being active even in her old age. At the age of 102, she started doing leg squats, which she said was good for keeping her in shape.

Okawa recounted that the happiest times of her life were her wedding and the birth of her three children, two of whom are still alive at the ages of 94 and 92.

Could it really be the case that eating right, sleeping plenty, and knowing how to relax properly are the keys to a long life? Is it more feasible an explanation that it’s more likely genetic than anything else? You can share your thoughts on the matter as well as you birthday wishes to Misao Okawa in the comments feed below.